Washing machine agitator



WASHING MACHINE AGITA'ITOR Filed May 5, 1930 John cJl M (Lqbe LN \ILNTOR ATTOIQNLIP'SP J. 1 MCCABE 1,978,113

atenlecl i l tl lid lhilitdllllli WING lllfidllllllllllllt .llohn ll. lllletlabe, lbleveland, lilihio Application ltlay 5, llddll), Serial No, idhlhd lib dilatin This invention relates to domestic washing ma chines of the agitator or gyrator type and particularly to such machines in which the agitator is mounted for operation in the bottom of the tub.

Machines of the general type referred to are rapidly displacing other types of washing machines for domestic use due to their quiclr cleansing action and other advantages. Such machines are generally provided with agitators having imld pelling vanes which are more or less symmetrically arranged about the axis of the paddle so that the reversible rotatable operation of the agitator imparts a radially outwardly movement to the liquid contents of the tub causing a vortex motion lit thereof. This type of agitation causes tangling and twisting of the clothes that are being washed and when the machine has been run a considerable length of time it will be found that the clothes being subjected to the washing action are wound an about each other entailing considerable dimculty in their subsequent handling.

in order to overcome this dimculty it has been proposed to use a single vane positioned adjacent the bottom of the tub in order to produce a movehd ment of the contents of the tub both outwardly and upwardly and across the tub. This type oi agitation is objectionable in that most of the agitation takes place over a small area adjacent the bottom of the tub and the articles being at washed are moved about with the water of the tub in a more or less elliptical or circular path without effecting as rapid a cleansing action as would be accomplished if the articles were sub iected to the action or a greater number of im= db neller vanes.

The object of the present invention is to pro vide a submerged agitator which will possess the advantages of the single vane and the multiple -wane agitators mentioned providing a fast washill ing action without tangling or subjecting the articles being washed to undue wear.

A further object of this invention is to provide a submerged agitator which shall be easy and economical to maize and which will agitate the an entire contents of the tub with a high degree of turbulence.

My improved agitator comprises a circular base portion having an imperforate vane arising therefrom the upper portion of which is curved and be bent to one side and adapted to extend to a point just below the normal water level of the tub.

By reason of the novel construction of my improved agitator the lower side portions of the 11m peller serve as two symmetrical radial blades for or the purpose of inducing a vortex motion to the (m. fiti'dllllill tub contents. The upper bent over portion of the blade serves to set up cross and counter-currents to such vortex motion providing a highly turbulent agitation throughout the entire volume of water in the tub. This method of agitation provides a i rapid washing action without tangling, tearing or unduly wearing the articles being washed.

With these and other objects and advantages in view, the invention consists of the novel construction arrangement and combination of parts hereinafter described and illustrated in some of its embodiments in the accompanying drawing and particularly pointed out in the appended claims. In the accompanying drawing which illustrates one embodiment of the present invention, Fig. l is a plan elevational view of my improved agi-- tator. Fig. 2 is a reduced section taken on line 21- 2 Fig. i. Fig. 3 is a side elevational view of reduced size of the device shown in Fig. 1.

As illustrated in the drawing my improved agitator comprises a base portion l of frusto-conical outline having an upper irusto-conical portion 2, the under side of which is adapted to provide a tapered splined socket 3 for driving connection with a complementary head formed on the agitator shalt of a washing machine. The details of my splined connection are shown and claimed in my co-pending application Serial 204,178 filed onor about July 8th, 1927 which application shows a washing machine of the type adapted for use of my improved agitator herein dis closed. The frusto-conical base 7 has a relatively short depending skirt i and is provided on its upper side with an upstanding vane comprising the vertical side portions 6 and the bent over or angularly disposed curved portion 7.

By this arrangement an inexpensive and simple agitator is provided which by reason of its shape provides a very emcient motion to the liquid contents of a washing machine tub and at the same time consumes a relatively small amount of power. The complete agitator is preferably con-- structed as a single integral die casting of any suitable material such as aluminum or of zinc die-casting metal. If desired the impeller vane and base portion may be made separately and then secured to each other to form the finished agitator. The lower edge (i-6 of the vane meets the disk 1 substantially transversely, and the upwardly projecting body of said vane is deflected to one side of the axis as shown in Fig. 2 so as to intersect obliquely that vertical plane (indicated by the line 2-2 in Fig. 1) which contains the dish axis and is perpendicular to the lower edge of said disk. The vane 7 is therefore symill/ii metric to the agitator axis in respect of this plane, but asymmetric with respect to the plane indicated by the line 66 perpendicular thereto. The disk preferably has its highest point at its intersection with the first named plane 2--2, and preferably decreases gradually in height in each direction therefrom.

In its operation the vertical side portions 6 of the agitator cause the contents of the tub to be expelled radially outwardly and then upwardly from the lower portion of the tub inducing a vortex motion of the contents thereof. The inclined and curved upper portion 7 of the agitator is adapted to induce currents in opposition to the vortex motion and at the same time divert the moving water from one side to the other of the tub. In this manner a very high degree of turbulence in the agitation of the contents of the tub is achieved during the operation of my improved agitator. Upon testing a full size model it has been found that this agitator may be run for periods of time much longer than ordinarily required for the washing operation without tangling the. clothes. Such tests further revealed that the agitator required considerably less power for its operation than other agitators giving approximately the same degree of agitation.

Due to the fact that the top portion 7 of the vane extends to a point just below the normal washing level of the tub the entire contents of the tub are subjected to a strong agitation and there is no portion of the contents of the tub which is not affected on each and every stroke of my improved agitator.

It is intended that the agitator herein disclosed is to be used in machines having a stroke of 180 degrees, so that the single vane of the agitator extending across the axis thereof provides in effect an agitator with two vanes which sweep through the entire contents of the tub with each complete cycle. It is of course apparent that my improved agitator could be used in machines having an angular stroke of more or less than 180 degrees with the result of increased or decreased agitation as the case may be.

Furthermore it is to be understood that the particular forms of apparatus shown and described and the particular procedure set forth are presented for purposes of explanation and that various modifications of said apparatus and procedure can be made without departing from my invention in the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention what I claim is.

1. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted in the tub of the machine for movement about an axis and embodying a circularly formed base member with an upstanding vane extending therefrom, the lower edge of said vane meeting said disk transversely and the body of said vane being inclined to one side of the vertical where it intersects that vertical plane which contains the disk axis and is perpendicular to the lower edge of said vane.

2. An agitator for a washing machine-adapted to be mounted in the tub of the machine for movement about an axis and embodying a circularly formed base member with an upstanding vane extending across the face oi. said base member, all horizontal elements of said vane being substantially parallel to each other and vertical elements of said vane being oblique and to one side of said axis, and said vane being so located that a vertical plane which intersects the same perpendicularly at its greatest height also substantially includes the axis of said base memher.

3. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted in the tub of the machine for movement about a vertical axis and embodying a circularly formed base member and an upstanding vane projecting from and extending across the upper face of said base member, said base memher being highest at its center,- and said vane being so shaped that one and the same vertical plane intersects perpendicularly both said base member at its highest part and said vane at its highest part the upper portion of said vane being dished and angularly disposed to one side of the vertical with respect to the lower portion thereof, and all horizontal elements of said vane being substantially parallel to each other.

4. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted in the tub of the machine for movement about an axis and embodying a circularly formed base member with a vane having a symmetrical and an asymmetrical inclined portion with respect to said axis adapted to impart turbulent agitation to the liquid contents of the washing machine tub said vane being highest at the part thereof which is nearest the axis of said base member.

5. An agitator for a washing machine mounted for movement about an axis and embodying a single substantially diametrically disposed blade terminating in an eccentrically positioned plate which is obliquely disposed to one side of the axis and highest at the point which is nearest said axis.

6. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted for movement about an axis and embodying a substantially diametrically disposed blade terminating in an eccentrically positioned curved plate which is obliquely disposed to one side of the axis and highest at the point which is nearest said axis.

7. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted for movement about an axis and embodying a substantially diametrically disposed blade terminating in an eccentrically positioned angularly disposed upwardly concave plate which is highest nearest the axis, its margin sloping downwardly in both directions from such highest point.

8. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted for movement about a vertical axis and comprising a substantially vertical impeller blade terminating in an eccentrically positioned plate which is highest nearest the axis, its margin sloping downwardly in both directions from such highest point.

9. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be-mounted for movement about a vertical axis and embodying a substantially vertical impeller blade terminating in an ecentrically positioned curved plate which is highest nearest the axis, its margin sloping downwardly in both directions from such highest point.

10. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted for movement about a vertical axis and embodying a substantially vertical impeller blade terminating in an eccentrically positioned concave plate which is highest nearest the axis, its margin sloping downwardly in both T directions from such highest point.

' 11. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted for movement,about a vertical axis and embodying a frusto-conical base having a substantially diametrically disposed imembodying a frusto-conical base having a substantially diametrically disposed blade terminating above in an eccentrically and angularly positioned concave plate located to one side of such axis and extending across the central part of said base.

ll. An agitator for a Washing machine adapted to be mounted for movement about a vertical axis and embodying a. frusto-conical base having a substantially vertically disposed blade terminating above in an angularly and eccentrically posi tioned plate located to one side of the vertical axis and extending across the central part of said base.

15. An agitator for a washing machine adapted to be mounted for movement about a vertical axis and embodying a frusto-conical base hav-- ing a substantially vertically disposed blade terminating above in an angularly and eccentrically positioned curved plate located to one side of the vertical axis and, extending across the central part of said base.

16. An agitator for a Washing machine adapted to be mounted for movement about a vertical axis and embodying a frusto-conical base having a substantially vertically disposed blade ter minating above in an angularly and eccentrically positioned concave plate located to one side of the vertical axis and extending across the central part of said base.

JOHN J. lvlcCE.

no H 

